


the playground

by orphan_account



Category: Dear Evan Hansen - Pasek & Paul/Levenson
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Kid Fic, Pre-Canon, they're both 8
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-06
Updated: 2018-09-06
Packaged: 2019-07-07 22:00:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15917112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: years before the connor project, years before evan's existance was even a thought, cynthia and heidi make a split second decision that will forever change both of their lives.





	the playground

The young girl scuffed her feet on the ground repeatedly, keeping her grip on the chains of the swing tight as she offhandedly watched the tiny plumes of dust and dirt she created ride and fall. Her ears were being battered constantly with the yells and noises of energetic elementary schoolers, though she couldn’t care less. She was in her own little world, letting her imagination be her playground. In her opinion, she needed nothing more. Even after her experienced four years of school, she wasn’t really sure why her classmates relied upon each other as much as they did- if they learned how to appreciate their own company, they’d see that it was enough.

 

The girl had actually always been rather disconnected from her peers. She always worked alone in class, and though she excelled academically, her teachers and parents still worried about her. “She needs to learn how to get along with other kids,” her parents had expressed, and her teacher had nodded along in agreement.

 

But the girl, with her warm hazel eyes and curly blonde hair that cascaded down her shoulders like a golden waterfall, paid no regards to what adults told her. She was strong, she was independent, and she was sure of herself. 

 

So, she didn’t really know what to think when she was approached by a stranger that day on the playground.

 

“Hi,” A small voice said, and the girl with the golden hair looked up expectantly. She blinked away the glare of sunlight in her eyes before her vision registered, and she saw a small and unexpected redheaded girl standing in front of her.

 

“I’m Cynthia.” The new girl stuck her hand out expectantly and flashed the blonde girl a gap-toothed grin without even waiting for the other to say anything. “Do you need somebody to play with? You look lonely.”

 

“Oh.” The blonde girl was taken aback- nobody had ever asked her to play before. She just always assumed everyone was happy with their own little groups of friends. “I’m Heidi. And, er, no. I’m okay, I don’t really need anyone to play with. I like it here. I like thinking. But that- that’s very nice of you.”

 

Cynthia blinked once before shrugging and skipping to the swing closest to Heidi’s. “Watcha thinkin’ ‘bout?” she asked, resting her chin on her hand and gazing at her newly declared friend. Heidi merely squinted back; she wasn’t sure why Cynthia- this girl she’d never even met- suddenly needed to be meddling in the complicated workings of her brain. 

 

But, if Heidi was being honest with herself, she wasn’t really sure how to answer that question. Even she wasn’t really sure where her mind spent all that alone time- she was a quick thinker and jumped from topic to topic quickly. One day she’d be making up elaborate fantasy realms in her mind and planning stories to write later, while another she simply watched everybody else from her hilltop. She’d learned a lot that way, and she was certain she knew more about how to interact with people than her classmates who actually interacted with people.

 

So, Heidi considered her words carefully before speaking. “It’s hard to explain,” she admitted. Looking over, the expression on Cynthia’s face told her that Cynthia was already a little lost. “I just mostly, uh, think up stories and stuff.”

 

Apparently she’d said the right thing, because Cynthia’s face lit up at Heidi’s words. “Stories!” she exclaimed. “I love stories. I want to be an author one day. I would be the best author ever. Everybody would buy my books, I bet. I wrote a story for my teacher about a duck and she said she loved it! Maybe one day I’ll write a whole novel about ducks!”

 

Hedi smiled softly. “That’s great. I would read a novel about ducks.”

 

Cynthia stuck her chin up. “Told you so.” She let a beat of silence pass before tilting her head and asking another question. “So, Heidi, new best friend. What do _you_ want to be when you grow up?”

 

Wait.

 

_ New best friend? _

 

The words struck an unusual chord inside Heidi’s heart. Nobody had ever called her a friend before. Let alone a best friend. It felt odd. But it was nice. Maybe she could get used to it. Maybe this whole “friendship” thing wasn’t so bad. Maybe Cynthia was the little bit of light she didn’t know she needed.

 

“Hey? You okay?”

 

Heidi jumped, shocked out of her thoughts, nearly tumbling backwards off of the swing which elicited a giggle from Cynthia. “I’m fine,” Heidi squeaked once her balance was stable.

 

“Be careful! If you fall you’ll break your arm and then we won’t be able to write our duck book together,” Cynthia warned, though her gaze was still warm.

 

Wait, so they were doing it together now? 

 

“Well, of course we have to write the duck book. Sorry, I’ll be more careful from now on.” Heidi giggled. “But honestly, I would also like to be a nurse, to answer your question.” She tossed her own question out of her mind.

 

Cynthia’s face contorted into a look of confusion. “A nurse?”

 

“Yeah.”

 

“But…”

 

Now it was Heidi’s turn to be confused. “But what?”

 

“Well…” Cynthia made an odd motion with her hands. She looked over at Heidi to she if she got it, but the other girl just looked confused. 

 

“Doesn’t that mean you’ll have to take care of people like Mark?” Cynthia finally enunciated.

 

The name was familiar, but Heidi couldn’t place where she’d heard it. “I don’t know him, sorry.”

 

Cynthia’s brown eyes went wide. “You don’t know Mark? He’s, like, famous. In a bad way. Everyone knows him. Everyone’s super scared of him. Last year he knocked a printer off the counter and almost hit me in the head with it. He told me later that he would have thrown it instead of just knocked it off but he wasn't strong enough.”

 

“What a jerk,” Heidi muttered.

 

“All teacher says he’s not, though, that’s the thing. It doesn't make any sense. They say he has an impression? Is that the word? He has an impression and he’s a bi-polar bear so it’s not his fault. Or something like that.” She pointed stiffly to a playground structure about thirty feet away. A lone shape huddled on the stairs to the slide, wrapped in a black sweatshirt, hood over his eyes. “That’s him. And if you became a nurse, you’d have to help people like him.”

 

Heidi understood what Cynthia was trying to say, but was failing to see the downside of helping someone like this Mark kid. A person was a person. What was so bad about helping somebody just because they were a little different?

 

“I know he’s a little scary,” Heidi admitted. “And I’d be lying if I said he didn’t scare me just a little bit. But he deserves just as much as you and me and everybody. So when I grow up, I’m gonna help people like him anyway.” An idea sparked in her mind, and she continued- “or maybe I can try to help him now.”

 

“But you’re not a nurse yet! You don’t know how!” Cynthia protested.

 

Heidi stood up. “I can try. He’s a third grader just like us. It can’t be too hard. And besides, I should start trying to get experience now.

 

“Okay.” Cynthia’s voice shook. “Be safe, alright?”

 

Heidi took Cynthia’s hand, giving it a squeeze and smiling. “I will. I promise.”

 

And with that, the course of Heidi’s whole life changed.

 

**Author's Note:**

> so,,, there's a thing that i wrote that isn't kleinsen  
> you're welcome
> 
> comments keep me alive


End file.
